Device for dispensing pressurized material



2 2 w y m 9 1 2 H M mm w m M 3 mg i, A m n) u 3 MW 1 mm w 2 a 0 c 7 sYfiw B 7 0 w w 0 W GRAVELEY DEVICE FOR DISPENSING PRESSURIZED MATERIAL Oct. 4, 1966 Filed June 26, 1964 Oct. 4,1966 0. w. GRAVELEY DEVICE FOR DISPENSING PRESSURIZED MATERIAL 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 26, 1964 INE R. OSC'Q? Z11 Gran/67% a! 0 2 w 2 2 w I a A TTOFNEY'S United States Patent 3,276,699 DEVICE FOR DISPENSING PRESSURIZED MATERIAL Oscar W. Graveley, Sanborn, N.Y., assignor to Niagara Frontier Services, Inc., Buffalo, N.Y. Filed June 26, 1964, Ser. No. 378,193 7 Claims. (Cl. 239-579) This invention relates to a gun type holder for dispensing pressurized material, such as aerosol sprays, either pro-packaged in cannisters or from a fixed supply, and particularly to a device for more efficiently directing an aerosol spray and the like and controlling the amount dispensed.

Dispensers containing pressurized aerosol sprays are well known in the art and have been utilized for applying such diverse chemicals as insecticides, germicides, paints, fire retardants, air fresheners and even moth proofers. These aerosol spray cans may contain powdered, commin-uted, semi-solid, liquid and fluid materials each to be dispensed by a carrier gas under pressure, usually through a spray nozzle or orifice extending through .a controlling actuator button or plunger. When the button or plunger is depressed, by finger pressure, the carrier gas and the material to be sprayed are passed together through the orifice causing the material to be atomized.

The conventional aerosol cannister is designed so that the operator holds the cylindrical body portion in the palm of one hand and actuates the upper valve mechanism with the thumb of the same hand. When the material is released the pressurized carrier gas expands, cooling the cannister, and depending upon the original pressure of the gas within the cannister, the container may become so cold that the skin of the operator is numbed or even burned.

The dispenser may also contain insecticides or other poisonous materials which should not be permitted to contact the skin. With the hand of the operator encircling the can and in close proximity to the spray orifice it is inevitable that some of the spray will be deposited upon the operators hand possibly causing an irritating reaction on the skin.

Furthermore, with the spray orifice situated in the usual small actuator button, it is difficult to aim the spray precisely. Also, due to manufacturing tolerances, the orifices of many of the cann-isters tend to be large, allow ing the cone of the spray to diverge quickly, not permitting the precise application of the sprayed material that is desired if the cannister is held at a distance from the point of application. When the spray cannister is held too close to the surface being covered, the coating tends to run while if the can is held at a distance from the surface, the applied material tends to come out of the dispersion and drip, as well as covering a large area.

It is often desirable to be able to apply the same amount of spray time after time. With the use of a regular finger depressed plunger this is impossible. The human judgment of time is, at best, not very accurate, and as the hands become tired or cramped, the time of applying the coatings will vary.

Therefore, it is an object of my invention to provide a hand operated device for actuating an aerosol can without the hand of the operator touching the cannister, so that the operator is protected from the icy cold of the cannister and possible skin irritation from the spray.

Another object of my invention is to provide a means for limiting the divergence of an aerosol spray at a distance from the dispensing cannister to permit a precisely defined application of sprayed material.

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A further object of my invention is to provide a means for regulating the actuation time of the dispenser which 15 substantially free of the operators sense of time.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent during the course of the following descrlptlon.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, and in which like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the same:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the aerosol cannister holder of the present invention with the cannister attached thereto, and having a section of the handle cover portion removed from the 'holder for a view of the actuating mechanism contained therewithin',

FIG. 2 is a view partly in plan and partly in section of the cannister holder and aerosol cannister of FIG. 1 with the handle cover portion in place, being taken about on line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the spray shield of the cannister holder taken along line 33 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the upper end of the cannister taken along line 44 of FIG. 2 illustrating means for attaching the cannister body to the holder frame, and the actuating button of the cannister to the actuating lever of the holder;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the upper end of the cannister attached to the cannister holder frame, taken along line 55 of FIG. 4, with the actuating lever removed to illustrate the shape of the actuator button;

FIG. 6 is a side plan view of the cannister holder with a cannister attached thereto, similar to FIG. 1, showing the holder with the trigger depressed to the point at which the spray is released, and illustrating the operation of the spring connecting link; and

FIG. 7 is a partial side plan view of a second embodiment of the invention utilizing a toggle linkage in place of the collapsible spring link.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the aerosol dispenser holder, generally designated 10, is shown mounting an aerosol cannister, generally designated 12. The holder 10 consists of a hollow pistol type handle 14 with a cannister mounting frame section 16 riveted thereto by a flange 18. A trigger 20 is pivotally mounted within the hollow pistol handle 14 and has an integral finger grip 22 extend-ing through the handle 14 to a position at which it may be easily held by a hooked finger of the hand of the operator wishing to use the aerosol cannister 12. An abutment 24, on the body of the trigger 20, lies within the hollow handle. An actuating lever 26 is pivotally mounted in the upper end of the handle 14 with a first end 28 extending out across the upper end of the aerosol cannister 12 and a second end 30 of the actuating lever 26 being contained within the hollow pistol handle 14. A compression spring 32, within the handle 14, is held between an upper face of the abutment 24 on the trigger and the lower face of the second end 30 of the actuating lever 26. Spring 32 can seat around projections 72 (FIG. 6) on end 30 and abutment 24.

An adjusting lever 34 is pivotally mounted within the hollow handle 14 of the aerosol dispenser holder 10, in the same plane as the trigger 20, with a first end 36 of the adjusting lever 34 adjacent the abutment 24 on the trigger 20 and biased toward the abutment 24 by a tension spring 38 connected at one end to the first end 36 of the adjustment lever 34 and at the other end to a fixed point in the hollow pistol handle 14. The second end 40 of the adjustment lever 34 has an adjusting screw 42 extending therethrough at a point adjacent the center of the compression spring 32 and substantially perpendicular thereto, with the knurled head 44 of the screw 42 lying outside the handle 14.

A cannister 12 is fixed in the frame 16 of the holder with the cylindrical body portion 42 of the cannister 12 positioned beneath the frame 16 and the actuating button 46 extending through a circular hole 48 in the frame 16. The first end 28 of the actuating lever 26 is operatively connected to the button 46 by a resilient, removable, coupling 50. The end of the frame 16, distant from the handle 14, is curved to form a circular mounting 52 for a conical funnel 54 whose walls tend to converge at a point distant from the mounting portion 52. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an absorbent lining 56 may be included within the conical funnel 54 to catch any particles that may tend to leave the spray and prevent dripping therefrom. Lining 56 is removable.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the cannister 12 may be removably held in the frame 16 of the holder 10 by means of a depending resilient flange 56 surrounding the hole 48 and snapping into the conventional crimped over annular neck bead 58 of the cannister 12. The actuator button 46 of the cannister 12, extending through the frame 16, has a pair of opposed flats 60, lying in planes parallel to the axis of the spray orifice 62 while the resilient coupling 50, connecting the button 46 to the end 28 of the actuating lever 26, has a pair of flat spring ears 64 formed so as to extend across the flats 60 on the button actuator 46 and further clamp onto the sides of the end 28 of the actuator lever 26 to hold the button 46 against rotation in a position with the axis of the orifice 62 coincident with the axis of the conical funnel.

FIG. 6 illustrates the operation of the aerosol cannister holding device. In solid line, the trigger 20 is shown partially depressed, the .compression spring 52 being driven upward thereby, pivoting lever 26 counterclockwise to depress the button 46 and emit a spray 66 from the orifice 62 through the funnel 54. As the trigger 20 is further depressed, the outer end of the abutment 24 on the trigger 20 pivots the adjustment lever 34 counterclockwise, causing the inner end of the screw 42 to bear against the compression coil spring 32 and buckle the same, as shown in broken lines. When this occurs, actuating lever 26 pivots clockwise under the influence of the usual compression spring (not shown) associated with the button 46, shutting off the spray 66. It will be appreciated that,

except for the fiat sides 60, button 46 can be any conventional, spring returned aerosol spray control button. FIG. 7 illustrates a modification of the invention wherein the compression spring 32 has been replaced with a toggle 68 pivotally connected between the abutment 24 on the trigger 20 and the end 30 of the actuating lever 26 and held upright to transmit a reciprocatory force by a compression spring 70 positioned between the trigger 20 and one of the links of the toggle 68. When the trigger 20 is first depressed, the toggle will hold the position shown, depressing the actuator button 46 and allowing a spray 66 to be emitted. Further depressing of the trigger will cause the end of the screw 42 to press against a link of the toggle 68, collapsing the toggle and releasing the actuator button 46.

The length of the portion of the adjustment screw 42, extending through the lever 34 toward the compression spring 32 or toggle 68, determines the length of time that the spray will be activated. The operator does not need to hold the trigger depressed in one position for a calculated time at each actuation to obtain a consistent amount of spray. All that need be done is to set the screw 42 by the knurled head 44 to a particular position and then slowly squeeze the trigger 20 to first activate the spray and second to shut it off.

If a narrow spray 66 is desired, for stenciling or other uses, the funnel 54 is used, if on the other hand, a large area is to be covered, the funnel 54 need only be unsnapped and removed.

While only one particular method for holding the cannister 12 to the frame 16 is shown, the cannister 12 could be held by any number of means that are quite old in the art such as a pipe clamp.

It will be understood, of course, that for purposes of explanation, I have merely illustrated in detail what I deem to be the presently preferred specific embodiment of my invention and that within the broader preview of the invention, as defined by the appended claims, various modifications may be made in the illustrated structure. The dispensing device of my invention is not limited to aerosols, or to use with portable canuisters. It can also be used to control a dispensing line from a fixed or remote supply.

What I claim is:

1. A device for dispensing pressurized material through a dispensing orifice comprising a depressible trigger, means consisting in part of a collapsible section connected to said trigger and adapted for connection to the orifice opening means of a pressurized material source to open the same upon partial depression of said trigger, and means collapsing said collapsible section automatically upon further depression of said trigger.

2. A device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said means adapted for connection to the orifice opening means includes a pivoted lever.

3. A device as set forth in claim 1, wherein said collapsing means are adjustable thereby to vary the extent of depression of said trigger required to collapse said section.

4. In combination with a source of pressurized material having a spring controlled actuator, an actuating device comprising a trigger mechanism, means operable upon movement of said trigger mechanism in one direction to move said actuator against the bias of its control spring, said means including a normally rigid collapsible section, and further means operable upon continued movement of said trigger mechanism in said one direction to collapse said section and restore said actuator to control by said spring.

5. The combination of claim 4, wherein said further means are adjustable to vary the degree of movement of said trigger mechanism prior to collapsing said section.

6. The combination set forth in claim 4, said actuator having a dispensing orifice, together with means for releasably holding said actuator, funnel means mounted on one side of said holding means with the axis of said funnel substantially coincident with the dispensing orifice axis, so that when a spray is emitted from the orifice it is constrained by the funnel, said actuating device being positioned on the opposite side of said orifice holding means.

7. The combination set forth in claim 6, together with means for maintaining the dispensing orifice in alinement with said funnel.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,225,029 5/1917 Hayes 239-578 2,602,700 7/1952 Ryan 239-579 2,728,608 12/1955 Marini 239-578 2,894,399 7/1959 Spence 74-96 2,939,326 6/1960 Dietrich 74-96 2,951,644 9/1960 Mah-on et a1. 239-338 2,971,382 2/1961 Harris 239-67 3,116,020 12/1963 Rosen et al. 239-578 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,322,998 2/1963 France.

M. HENSON WOOD, JR., Primary Examiner. R. S. STROBEL, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A DEVICE FOR DISPENSING PRESSURIZED MATERIAL THROUGH A DISPENSING ORIFICE COMPRISING A DEPRESSIBLE TRIGGER, MEANS CONSISTING IN PART OF A COLLAPSIBLE SECTION CONNECTED TO SAID TRIGGER AND ADAPTED FOR CONNECTION TO THE ORIFICE OPENING MEANS OF A PRESSURIZED MATERIAL SOURCE TO OPEN THE SAME UPON PARTIAL DEPRESSION OF SAID TRIGGER, AND MEANS COLLAPSING SAID COLLAPSIBLE SECTION AUTOMATICALLY UPON FURTHER DEPRESSION OF SAID TRIGGER. 